Creating Batteries from Undersea Vents

Oct-27-13 A technology that uses hydrothermal vents on the ocean floor to generate electricity could alleviate one of the challenges of deep-sea exploration.

A collaborative team from the RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science developed the technology—a robotic-assembled system that basically works like a standard battery. The system takes advantage of the electron-rich ions found in hydrothermal fluid and the contrasting electron-depleted ions of seawater. By placing one electrode in the seawater and another in the hydrothermal fluid, a chemical gradient is created that produces an electric current. In tests, the system produced enough current to powers three LED lamps.

Previous attempts to use hydrothermal vents to create electricity were based on the temperature difference of the vent fluid and seawater. The new method is more effective, and makes use of corrosive-resistant electrodes crate from an iridium-coated titanium mesh.

Image: WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim
The robotic system inserts an electrode into hydrothermal fluid released from deep-sea vents.

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[PHYS.ORG]
[RIKEN]

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